“Shock Value” dir. Dino Everett (2014)

Posted on October 24, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

Jason Zinoman’s 2011 book “Shock Value” was a fascinating look at the creation of several transgressive and classic horror films of the 1970s that not only redefined the genre, but Hollywood as a whole (“Night of the Living Dead,” “Last House on the Left,” “The Exorcist,” “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” “Halloween,” “Alien” to name a few). One of the best parts of Zinoman’s book was in exploring the roots of these films and filmmakers, specifically film students at the University of Southern California (USC) during the early 1970s. Many of these student films were horror-themed and many of these films either influenced these great films or whose filmmakers went on to play an integral part in Hollywood later.

USC Cinema Archivist Dino Everett has assembled many of these classic (but not seen for years) short films for his new feature-length anthology called “Shock Value.” Among the films featured are: two versions of Dan O’Bannon’s “Blood Bath” short and “Good Morning Dad,” John Carpenter’s “Captain Voyeur,” Charles Adair’s “The Demon,” and Terrence Winkless’s “Judson’s Release.” While I’m excited to see all of these, I am most eager to see “Judson’s Release,” which was written by Alec Lorimore. I saw “Judson’s” many years ago on HBO and it scared me to death. The plot later formed the basis for the popular film “When a Stranger Calls” and while “Stranger” had its effective moments, “Judson’s” was much more terrifying.

The film just premiered at USC last week and should be hitting theaters and film festivals in the coming months. Dave says check it out!

For more information about “Shock Value,” there’s a great overview at the link below:

Shock Value: The Movie

The “Free Bird” climax from “The Devil’s Rejects” (2005) dir. Rob Zombie

Posted on October 23, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

This is the climax from Rob Zombie’s best film, “The Devil’s Rejects.” “Rejects” is a throwback to the nasty, gritty, and extremely political indie horror classics from the 1970s (“Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” “Dawn of the Dead”) and like its 70s horror film brethren, Zombie’s film directly comments on the political state of America and its foreign policy circa the mid-2000s. The family of killers on display in “Rejects” may be vile, but the law enforcement sent to hunt them down are arguably equally as vile. This is the film’s climax set to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird” and it’s a brilliant use of this song as the gang goes up against the equally morally compromised police. I can’t imagine a more 70s ending for a film. In other words, f–king great!

Roy Batty’s death scene from “Blade Runner” (1982) dir. Ridley Scott

Posted on October 22, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

One of the saddest and most beautiful moments in movie history. This is the scene from “Blade Runner” where the film’s ostensible “villain” Roy Batty (played by Rutger Hauer) saves the life of the film’s hero Rick Deckard (played by Harrison Ford) and delivers a brief, but moving monologue before dying:

“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I’ve watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those … moments will be lost in time, like tears…in rain. Time to die.”

The first 25 minutes of “When a Stranger Calls” (1980) dir. Fred Walton

Posted on October 20, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOmAKZBj-Ro

Since I can’t find the legendary USC film school short from 1971 “Judson’s Release” by Terence H. Winkless (which is a much better representation of this infamous urban legend), I’ll have to provide this clip instead from the 1980 film “When a Stranger Calls.” Granted, this is a VERY effective opening to a film. It’s so good that the rest of the film doesn’t compare to the first 25 minutes. But if you’ve ever been a babysitter … or hired one at some point … this is one of the scariest things you’ll ever see.

Crispin Glover’s appearance on “Late Night With David Letterman” July 28, 1997

Posted on October 13, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

Here is Crispin Glover’s infamous interview with David Letterman on “Late Night With David Letterman.” Despite Glover’s bizarre behavior here, he later admitted he was trying to do a tribute to some of the brilliantly demented appearances Andy Kaufman had on Letterman’s from the early 1980s. The only problem with Glover’s tribute was that Letterman wasn’t in on it. And Letterman was clearly disturbed by what went down, as evidenced in Letterman’s commentary after Glover “left” the show. This may seem relatively tame these days, but back in the day, this appearance, along with Glover’s performance in the brilliant film “River’s Edge” and a demented Spin Magazine profile from around the same time, created a mini-cult amongst my friends for Glover for many, many years.

John Landis interview from the “Kevin Pollak Chat Show”

Posted on October 4, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

This is a legendary, nearly 3-hour interview with film director John Landis from the Kevin Pollak Chat Show that is one of the best and most candid interviews I’ve ever seen with a director. Landis directed some of the funniest movies ever made (“Kentucky Fried Movie,” “National Lampoon’s Animal House,” “The Blues Brothers,” “An American Werewolf in London,” “Trading Places,” “Coming to America”), some terrific documentaries (“Slasher” and “Mr. Warmth”), and arguably, the most famous music video of all time (“Michael Jackson’s Thriller”). Landis has so many great, oftentimes extremely funny, tales of a career that spans almost 50 years … one that started when he was a teenager. It’s a career that includes directing the likes of Michael Jackson, Eddie Murphy, John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Don Rickles, and many others too numerous to mention. I don’t know if everything he’s sharing is the truth, but even if 20% of what he says is true, he’s lived a more exciting life than pretty much anyone reading this right now. The man is a great storyteller and this interview seems way shorter than it actually is. If you’re a comedy or film nerd, you must watch this.

“Best of Bob and Doug MacKenzie” from SCTV

Posted on October 2, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

For your consideration … here’s 20 minutes of Bob & Doug MacKenzie clips recorded for various “SCTV” episodes during the early 1980s. The origin for the MacKenzie brothers came from the Canadian government who insisted that “SCTV” broadcast two minutes of exclusively Canadian “content.” SCTV producer/writer/performer Dave Thomas was flabbergasted at such a demand, so he decided to give them the worst stereotype of Canada he could possibly think of. Thomas and fellow SCTV cast member / writer Rick Moranis gave them two dumb drunk Canadians who talked about nonsense for two minutes. Thomas said that all of their clips were made up on the spot and because they were recorded at the end of the day when everyone went home … they took full advantage of this time to … well … to unwind … meaning that beer they were enjoying was real. I think that’s called method acting, eh.

The irony, of course, was that this throwaway bit, done with as little preparation as possible, wound up becoming “SCTV”‘s most popular recurring segment, leading to a Top 10 album in the US and a feature-length film for MGM in 1983 called “Strange Brew.” I’m sure any similarity with the creation of the MacKenzie Brothers and Spike Lee’s “Bamboozled” is purely coincidental.

If you’re at all interested in the MacKenzie Brothers, “Strange Brew” or SCTV in general, you’re encouraged to check out the mammoth 4-hour podcast from the Projection Booth about all of these things. The podcast is hosted by Mike White, Skizz Cyzyk, and actor Craig Bierko (“The Long Kiss Goodnight,” “Cinderella Man”) and features interviews with Thomas, screenwriter Steve De Jarnatt, actress Lynne Griffin (“Pam”), and author Jeff Robbins. It’s a beauty, eh.
http://projection-booth.blogspot.com/2014/09/episode-182-strange-brew.html

The Tube Bar prank call tape … as featured in “Red” (1991) dir. Christian Gore

Posted on September 27, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h81AmMdK1Z4

One of the funniest and most famous prank call tapes of all-time were the series of calls made to the Tube Bar in New Jersey to the bar’s owner, a man known as Red. The caller would ask Red if certain patrons were available at the bar to talk. The names were usually plausible, but ultimately ridiculous names like “Pepi Roni” or “Mike Hunt” (say that last one to yourself a few times quietly, if you’re not sure it’s ridiculous). Sometimes Red would comply, shouting out the ridiculous names into the bar, but other times he would see through the ruse and let loose with some of the funniest profanity ever uttered by a human being. I realize being on the receiving end of telephone harassment isn’t funny, but when you’re not the one receiving it, it can sometimes be pretty f–king hysterical.

What’s featured here is the original Tube Bar tape set to visuals crafted by Film Threat editor Christian Gore, starring the late, great Lawrence Tierney as Red. Aside from Joe in “Reservoir Dogs” and his role as Elaine’s dad on “Seinfeld,” this may be Tierney’s finest role.

As you can imagine, absolutely not safe for work.

If you haven’t noticed already, this is the “inspiration” for Bart Simpson’s prank calls to Moe on “The SImpsons.”

“Let it Be” – The Beatles … from the film “Let it Be” (1970) dir. Michael Lindsay-Hogg

Posted on September 4, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFFNuyxN9wA

From the infamous 1970 Beatles documentary film “Let it Be” is the band performing the title song, done in a much rawer and intimate version than the version we all know and love, pre-Phil Spector “sweetening.” I realize this will sound like a cliche and that the Beatles are the last group of musicians on this planet who deserve belated praise, but this footage of all four Beatles performing this together towards the end of their career … with a very young Billy Preston on keyboards … really takes my breath away. I realize the Beatles, as brilliant as they are, may seem like the most overrated band in history, but it’s moments like this that really make me swallow hard and reassess. They weren’t always brilliant, but they had way more hits than misses. And the sheer quantity of great music made over an 8-year period … a very short period of time … is astonishing. And one more thing … all of these guys were 30 years of age or younger when they finally hung it up.

“Bye Bye Love” from “All That Jazz” (1979) dir. Bob Fosse

Posted on August 28, 2014 by Dave's Strange World

Like “Pink Floyd The Wall,” “All That Jazz” is one of those simultaneously brilliant and infuriatingly narcissistic autobiographies that many artists create to expose themselves to the world, warts and all. Except … is this really the darkest pit of their ugly soul these artists are exposing? Or is it a ruse to keep people off the scent of their true self … a self so horrible that they feel the need to throw out some “bad” stuff in order to win praise for “bravery”? Who knows?

The sequence linked here is the last 18+ minutes of the film … an extended sequence with a “Broadway” version of the Everly Brothers’ “Bye Bye Love” that is simultaneously nauseating and dazzling. Nauseating because it’s a “Broadway” version of the Everly Brothers … dazzling because it’s one of the most brilliant artistic talents of the last century at his best. This is a sequence you’ll either love or hate. I want to hate this in the worst way, but … I totally love it. It’s tacky, tasteless, and over-the-top, but I think it was meant to be all of these things. Love it or hate it, you have to admire the balls-to-the-wall energy and chutzpah on display here. And the part near the end where the Fosse surrogate, Joe Gideon (brilliantly played by Roy Scheider), hugs his tearful daughter on his way to death’s door always makes me cry. It’s the one extremely real moment in an otherwise fanciful sequence and it hits like a motherf–ker!